Because Your Element Impacts Your Health

        Because I love Halloween I thought I'd put up a fun little quiz to see which element is influencing you the most as we change seasons and Fall takes hold of our senses. I try to factor element type as well as astrology sign into my acupuncture prescription for patients. I have found certain symptoms seem to correlate to certain signs more frequently than others. The same can be said for which element type a person may be. SO... 

What Element Are You?

What's your favorite season?

A)winter B)spring C)summer D)late summer E)fall

Wearing which color makes you feel comfortable and confident?

A) blue/black B) green C) red D) yellow E) white

You need a snack- you grab something

A) salty B) sour C) bitter D) sweet E) pungent

You're most energetic when the weather is

A) cold B) windy C) Hot D) humid E) dry

Movie Night! What are we watching?

A) horror B) action/adventure C) comedy D) heartwarming E) tear-jerker

I have really healthy...

A) hair B) nails C) skin D) lips E) body hair

My friends say I'm very...

A) wise B) generous C) insightful D) inspiring E) altruistic

When faced with a frustrating problem I...

A) can't concentrate B) lose patience C) get angry

D) consult with others E) adapt, if I can

My face shape is

A) round/wider jaw B) inverted triangle C) round & full D) square E) rectangle

Okay! Let's see...

Most people aren't just one element. We all have aspects of every element, but usually one stands out from the rest. Which answer did you choose the most?

A: water B: wood C: fire D: earth E: metal

 “But what does it all mean!?!” you ask? Your five element type influences not just what you tend to like and enjoy but how you perceive the world and your place in it. It can influence which foods really help your health and which ones flatten your energy, how much sleep is optimum for you, even what time of the day you feel at your best. 

Here's a little more about traditional qualities of the Five Element Types

Water

• The Water person is thick: thick eyelids, thick jaw, thick hands.
• They are shaped like a ball, with fleshy, round features, big eyes, thick eyebrows and eyelashes, thick hair. They tend to be on the plump side and introspective.
• They have an indigo complexion, which darkens when they are unwell.
• Their voice is relaxed and low. Their gait is slow and slightly shuffling.

Wood

• The Wood person is long: long face, long body trunk, long fingers.
• They are shaped like a tree, with a long face, wide on top and narrow at the bottom, tend to be bony, with wide, slouching shoulders.
• They have a greenish complexion, a solemn look and can be quick to anger.
• Their voice is blunt and short. Their stride is loose but forceful.

Fire

• The Fire person is pointy: pointy nose, pointy chin, pointy head.
• They are shaped like a torch with full, round faces, and thin hair. They tend to be plump, of medium build with sloping shoulders.
• They have a reddish complexion; their ears, neck and face flush crimson easily.
• Their voice is sharp and high. Their walk is dance like, light-footed and fleet.

Earth

• The Earth person is short: short body, short neck, short fingers.
• They are shaped like a square with square faces, big ears and noses. They have muscular and thick torsos, tend to be clumsy, seem honest and guileless.
• The have a yellowish complexion, which loses its luster when they are unhappy.
• Their voice is loud, low-pitched with a nasal tone. Their gait solid and staid.

Metal

• The Metal person is thin: thin lips, thin eyelids, thin hands.
• They are attractive-looking, with rectangular faces, with defined, symmetrical features. They tend to be slim, graceful and lively, persuasive communicators.
• The have a pale complexion which blanches when they are unhappy.
• Their voice is mellifluous and throaty. Their gait is swift, light, and lively.

Because Acupuncture Treats PTSD and Depression

    In Chinese Medicine there is no separation of the province of disease. Regardless of whether you are experiencing back pain or emotional pain, you go to see your Acupuncturist. Sometimes the back pain has been caused by the emotional pain, after all. The afflictions of the seven emotions are well documented throughout the multitude of ancient texts we use to treat everyday maladies. Each of the five phases is associated with it's own organ, sound, color, direction, season and emotion, among other things. (my italics, of course) Many times when we are asking our patients questions about their emotions we are searching for the root of the problem.
    The modern Chinese term for pycho-somatic medicine is xingshen bingxue. Let's clarify the terms. Psycho-somatic is a physical malady or condition caused or triggered by emotional conflict or stresses. It's alternately defined as any malady involving both the mind and the spirit.
     Xing (matter)shen (spirit)  Bingxue  is the study of how the body and the mind relate in the progression of disease.(1) When the heart/mind connection is assaulted with violence the body is thrown into a turmoil of reaction. For some patients this becomes depression; unable to move out of the moment of violence itself and weighed down by it's inescapable miasma. For others it is PTSD and the entire world around them seems like a trigger waiting to cause a panic attack; thrown back into the experience of terror to relive it again and again.
     The xingshen must be mended for lasting progress to be made. For many patients with depression a therapist can only help so much. Medications have a multitude of side effects ranging from the irksome (bloating, dry eyes) to relationship damaging (sexual dysfunction) and, at worst, the deadly (liver failure).  This is where acupuncture can add the crucial missing element, to help complete the picture of what whole health looks like.
     The sheer volume of studies done in the last ten years looking at the efficacy of acupuncture for stress, anxiety and depression is staggering. A recent review of studies through 2011 of clinical trials found acupuncture to be as effective at treating depression as standard talk therapy with or without the addition of common depression medications. (2)
        As far as the US Military is concerned, there must be enough proof for them, because they have embraced acupuncture in a huge way. PCOM-NY (my dear alum) has long had a intern program with the VA hospital to treat everything from addiction to chronic pain to depression and PTSD.  One of the biggest problems for returning vets is struggling to re-acclimate to a world without constant impending violence. Many survivors of violent assault or events attest to the same feelings of waiting for something similar, or worse, to happen again.
      Reuniting the mind-body connection that has damaged by trauma is a natural extension of the holistic healing approach of acupuncture. The disconnection lies between that which roots us to the world and gives us the will to be active within it and that which harbors the calm, serene spirit and mind. Regardless of what the body feels in those moments of panic, the mind can once again find a safe harbor.


(1) Heiner Fruehauf "all diseases come from the heart: the pivotal role of the emotions if classical Chinese medicine" classicalchinesemeicine.org( 2) Acupuncture for depression: a review of clinical applications Wu, et al. CanJPsychiatry 2012;57(7):397-405

Because Acupuncture Can Help

      When I tell  people I'm an Acupuncturist there are always the inevitable questions. "Does it really work?" or a variation thereof, throwing in "placebo" for good measure. Sometimes it's followed up with "Isn't it expensive?" or "I don't think my insurance covers it."  And, of course, the perennial favorite: "Oh, needles! Doesn't it hurt?"
      When I began studying Acupuncture I would vociferously defend the validity of the medicine from every angle I could think of. I would go on and on about research, past and present. Discuss which ailments the World Health Organization or the National Institute of Health currently list as showing improvement with acupuncture. Medical conditions such as high blood pressure, chronic pain, insomnia and Bell's Palsy, among many others.
     I would point out the sheer volume of hospitals around the US that have integrated some aspect of acupuncture into their facilities. Hospitals here in New York like Sloan Kettering, New York Presbyterian and Mount Sinai. In fact, a recent survey by the American Hospital Association showed that 42% of hospitals in the US has at least some kind of acupuncture available. Even the US Military has recognized the efficacy of acupuncture for better pain management, treatment of PTSD, and speeding the rehabilitative process.  A recently released report from the office of Veteran Affairs, highlighting the concern over their skyrocketing addiction and suicide rates, emphasized the efficacy of acupuncture versus pain medications for Afghan returnees.
      Then I'd inform people most health insurance plans cover some CAM (complimentary/alternative medicine) treatments. Lots of people could use their insurance, they just don't know. The New York State House and Senate has even passed a bill adding acupuncture to workman's comp coverage. Now the Governor just has to sign it.
     
   

      I started on the journey to become an acupuncturist after it effectively cured my arthritis. I know, I can't say "cured" to a patient I ever plan to treat. It's disingenuous and illegal.  It is, however, exactly what I experienced. I saw a wonderful Acupuncturist in midtown for 3 months. After 10 treatments all of my symptoms were alleviated and have not had a reappearance since. All the standard western interventions had done nothing for me except mask my pain and disrupt my digestion. I was amazed that pain I had been living with for 3 years diminished and disappeared in such a short time. It sparked a light in me and I decided I had to know how to do this, too. So my journey began.
     Now that know for myself, I just keep it simple and answer the questions.
   

     Does it hurt? Not really. The needles we use are pre-packaged sterile, single use stainless steel needles that are roughly the thickness of one of the hairs on your head.
     Does it work? Yes. Speaking from both sides of the needle, I know firsthand how effective a handful of needles can be. I have treated or helped treat patients with a myriad of conditions, virtually all of whom saw definitively positive results from their time in treatment. I don't bother with the naysayers; they like staying skeptical in the face of mounting evidence and that's their prerogative.
    Seriously though, if you and I were sitting around, talking about our health and life and stuff, drinking some coffee or whatever, and you asked me about it I'd say:
   "Look, if you've been shot or you broke something or any other emergency, of course go to the emergency room. If you're bleeding profusely or can't breathe, please, go."
Then I would pause, just a moment, maybe take a sip of that coffee or whatever...
"But if you've got anything else going on, and I really do mean anything, physically, mentally or emotionally,
go see your acupuncturist."